I have spent many hours trying to reconcile Crater Community Hospice’s motto “Celebrating Life Every Day” with the knowledge that our patients are facing end of life illnesses and don’t have many days left for celebration.

Below is one of our patient’s stories and a full electronic version of your Spring newsletter. Their story gives us all insight.

A Legacy of Love

“…Do all The Good You Can, As Long as Ever You Can…”

The magnet on my parent’s refrigerator was one of the things I grabbed before closing the door to their home for the last time. The full quote by John Wesley captured the essence of Dave and Lucy’s life, for they went about, ‘doing all the good they can, to all the people they can, in all the ways they can, as long as ever they can.’

We are hosting a customer appreciation day tomorrow, Saturday May 6th, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at 3916 S. Crater Road, Petersburg. This celebration of the store’s fourth anniversary will include a variety of special promotions, refreshments, and door prizes to thank the community for their loyal support.

Select local artisans will also have their merchandise available – some utilizing items they purchased from the thrift shop.

It’s hard to believe it has been more than four years since the Crater Community Hospice Thrift Shop officially opened in April 2013. In just the last fiscal year, there were more than 1800 donations – that’s an average of more than 5 every single day the shop is open. Those donations are processed by manager Jennifer Adkins and her team of dedicated part-time staff and volunteers. An average of more than 200 volunteer hours are contributed every month as they assist with processing donations, pricing and arranging merchandise, and assisting customers.

Donations are accepted during all regular business hours, Monday – Saturday 10am-5pm. We welcome gently used clothing, books, household items, and furniture. We are not able to accept mattresses, computers, or exercise equipment. All items must come from a smoke-free/chemical- free home. Jennifer and her team maintain strict standards for what will be sold – other items are donated to be recycled or repurposed.

On any given day the store carries a wide range of goods, including jewelry, collectibles, kitchen items, bedding, toys and games, lamps, craft supplies, small appliances, books, home décor including seasonal items, and an extensive collection of clothes and accessories for men, women, and children. Some of these are included in weekly 50% off sales! While subject to change, you will often find kitchenware on sale every Wednesday, women’s clothes on Tuesday, wall décor on Thursday, kid’s items on Friday, and men’s clothing on Saturday. Monday is a mystery sales day – you never know what it will be, but recent sales have included belts and shoes. Items are processed daily, so visit often to see the latest finds!

Crater Community Hospice Thrift Shop has a two-fold mission: to offer high-quality, affordable merchandise, and those proceeds from those sales then provide support for the hospice’s services to families in local communities. The hospice serves the cities of Petersburg, Colonial Heights, Hopewell, and Emporia as well as the counties of Charles City, Chesterfield, Dinwiddie, Greensville, Prince George, Surry, and Sussex. Visit the CCH Thrift Shop today and help support your community hospice, providing care since 1995. CCH Thrift Shop is located at 3916 South Crater Road Petersburg VA 23805, phone 804.722.3943. Open Monday – Saturday, 10am-5pm.

Our October Coffee Chat featured an informative presentation on Hearing Aid Technology & Tinnitus Debra Ogilvie, Au.D., Doctor of Audiology from Richmond Hearing Doctors. Here are a few highlights!

A quick review of hearing loss: the hearing test measures your ability to hear sounds of varying pitch and loudness. This can determine if you are within the range of normal hearing, or on the scale from mild to moderate, severe, or even profound hearing loss. There are two main types of hearing loss:

Conductive Hearing Loss represents 5% of all hearing losses. It occurs in the ear canal, ear drum and/or middle ear. It can be caused by earwax, trauma, or disease.

Sensorineural Hearing Loss represents 95% of all hearing losses. It occurs in the inner ear. It is caused by aging, noise exposure, disease, and genetics. It is often called “Nerve Loss” or “Nerve Deafness.”

A few important facts about hearing loss:

On average 1 out of every 3 people aged 65 and older have significant hearing loss

Seniors rank hearing loss as the 3rd most disabling but treatable condition

It can negatively impact quality of life, relationships, communication ability, and lead to depression.

Today there are many options for different hearing aid styles. Some are very discreet and unlikely to be noticed by anyone else! There are many advantages of digital hearing aids, including:

Automatic volume adjustments

Reduction of internal noise and distortion

Greater precision in fitting

Clear, clean, crisp sound quality

New technology has created many options, including:

Extended wear hearing aids that are inserted in the doctor’s office and then worn 24/7 until they are replaced every 1-3 months by your doctor

Hearing aids that directly connect to your smartphone for phone calls and music without requiring any cords

Rechargeable hearing aids

Ten Tips for Speaking to the Hard of Hearing:

Face the person directly; avoid talking from another room

Speak naturally; it is more important to speak slowly rather than louder

Avoid using long sentences

Rephrase rather than repeat the original words

Avoid sudden changes of topic

Make one point, and then stop and wait to make sure you were understood before continuing

What is Tinnitus? It is the perception of sound that does not actually exist in the environment. It may sound like buzzing, ringing, crickets, steam, or any other sound. It can occur in one ear, both, or un-localized “in the head”. It can be intermittent or constant. And finally, it may or may not be associated with hearing loss.

Over 50 million Americans suffer from tinnitus, and 34 million experience it regularly. Of those, 2 million consider it to be debilitating. Unfortunately there is not a cure, but with proper management it should not affect your life. There are many management options including several different types of sound therapy. Some patients use amplification through hearing aids.

We thank Debra for such a detailed program on this important topic! For a free hearing screening and consultation, please visit one of her offices – for Midlothian at 13925 Coalfield Commons Place #101 call 804.818.0000 or for Richmond at 7301 Forest Avenue #202 call 804.282.0022. Her website is www.richmondhearingdoctors.com

We hope you’ll join us for the next Coffee Chat on Thursday Nov 3rd at 8am where I will be joining several other staff members and volunteers to discuss the national “We Honor Veterans” program and how Crater Community Hospice works to support our veterans and their families. Learn more about the program here. RSVP today online here or contact Patti Cox at (804) 840-6454 or pcox@cratercommunityhospice.org. Held in our offices at 3916 South Crater Road in Petersburg.

June 20, 2016, the summer solstice, is the longest day of the year. The Longest Day has become a national day for fundraising and to raise awareness for the Alzheimer’s Association. Sunrise-to-sunset events symbolize the challenging journey of those living with the disease and their caregivers. Everyone is encouraged to fundraise and participate to honor someone facing the disease.

This year, Crater Community Hospice wants to encourage the community to donate an item to our Crater Thrift Shop, make a purchase from the Thrift Shop, or make a monetary donation toward “The Longest Day”. We will be donating 10% of our proceeds from the Thrift Shop on this day to the Alzheimer’s Association to recognize what the association does to assist our hospice families who are dealing with Alzheimer’s and related dementias.

All of June is Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month, with many people using the hashtags #ENDALZ and #IGoPurpleFor throughout the month on social media. Users are encouraged to post pictures of a loved one with Alzheimer’s whom you’re honoring and perhaps fundraising for.

Just a few facts about the growing global epidemic of Alzheimer’s, courtesy of the Alzheimer’s Association:

Worldwide, 47 million people are living with dementia

That number is set to skyrocket to 75 million by 2030

Alzheimer’s disease is the sixth-leading cause of death in this country

More than 5 million Americans are living with the disease

In the USA, 15.9 million family and friends serve as caregivers

The National Alzheimer’s Association has a 24 hour helpline, where you can call toll-free anytime day or night at 1.800.272.3900. This helpline serves people with memory loss, caregivers, health care professionals and the public. On the Alzheimer’s Association website, you can join their message boards and chat rooms.

Locally, Crater Community Hospice has a long relationship with the Greater RVA chapter of the National Alzheimer’s Association, and CEO Brenda Mitchell currently serves as secretary on their board. The chapter offers many free programs in the Tri-Cities areato support families affected by Alzheimer’s; please click to see a current listing. Please note pre-registration is required for all programs; rsvp to Cindy Hamlin, Regional Director for Tri-Cities, at 804.526.2359 or chamlin@alz.org

Please share these resources with anyone in our area who is dealing with Alzheimer’s, and don’t forget to support “The Longest Day” on June 20th.

Revised 7/12/16: Crater Community Hospice is currently hiring for a full-time Hospice Primary RN Case Manager. (Click the title of the position for a full job description.) The other positions below have been filled.

Crater Community Hospice (CCH) is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against otherwise qualified applicants on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, ancestry, age, sex, marital status, national origin, disability or handicap, or veteran status.

Crater Community Hospice Thrift Shop Mission

Crater Community Hospice Thrift Shop has a two fold mission. All the proceeds from the shop sales go to provide outstanding hospice care to our patients in the Petersburg and tri-city areas. We strive to offer high quality, affordable merchandise to the community. We also accept donations from those who no longer want items they no longer need.